The Sounds of Life
by Lemniscate35173
Summary: Little drabbles and one-shots inspired by various songs. Various pairings.
1. Let It Be

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

**For the Shipping Shuffle Competition on HPFC**

**Song: Let It Be by The Beatles**

**Pairing: Harry/Fred**

* * *

Harry glanced across the Room of Requirement and instantly wished he hadn't. He – Fred – was flirting with some random girl, and quite obviously too. Harry cut his eyes away, willing the ache in his chest to just go back to whatever pit of hell it had decided to come and plague him from. "It doesn't help, you know." A voice said from behind him.

Harry turned. Hermione was standing there, a mournful look on her face. "Watching, I mean." She added, trying to be helpful. Her face turned the odd mournful and wistful combination again. "It's best to just let it be."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "I thought you would be the one telling me to go for it." He replied.

Hermione shook her head, the look more prominent than ever. "No," She said, "I know better than that. Sometimes it just will never work." She sighed.

"You sound like you speak from experience." He commented.

Hermione turned so that she was fully facing him, he elbow leaning on one of the few tables that occupied the space. "Maybe," She replied, giving no hint as to the actual answer.

"Only maybe?" He asked her, not suspicious, but not quite curious either.

"In a world like this, it's better to have plausible deniability." She evaded the question, "Especially when it's someone like you and someone like him." She cut her eyes back to where Fred was still shamelessly flirting with the girl, Susan maybe. Harry couldn't tell at this distance.

Harry got what Hermione was saying. This society, their society now, was stuck in the Victorian ages. Even in the muggle world liking someone who wasn't of the opposite gender was greatly frowned upon, dangerous in the wrong places; dangerous in a lot of places, actually. Harry could only imagine what it would be like in this world, where things were dangerously old-fashioned. The fact that he was a celebrity made it a thousand times worse.

"They seem to have women's rights down. Who knows, maybe they've got this as well." His own voice sounded both hollow and desperate at the same time.

Hermione looked at him disbelievingly. "Just let it be Harry. It's better that way." She said this with an air of finality. She turned, and walked over to where Ron and Neville were practicing, and in a few second they were doing it three-way, though it was obvious that the real competition was between Ron and Hermione.

Harry turned back to where Fred was still flirting with that girl. Hermione's words echoed in his ears. _Just let it be. _The aching in his chest started again, spreading out all the way through him. _Just let it be._

The bell struck ten o'clock. It would be dangerous to stay out any later. Then again, what difference would it make for him? Just being Harry Potter meant everything was dangerous: school, friends, love. "Alright everybody," He called out to the room. "That's enough for the night."

Slowly the members of the D.A. trickled out of the room in groups of two or three, so not as to raise the suspicions of less supportive people, until it was only Hermione and the twins, Ron having insisted on chaperoning Ginny and Michael Corner's walk back to their respective towers.

Hermione glanced over at Harry. It was clear she knew what he was planning. She sent him a disapproving glance, but Harry knew it was the fact that he was going through with doing it, not what he was actually doing, that had earned her disapproval. Harry sent back a determined gaze of his own.

"George," Hermione said suddenly, "There's something I need to show you." She grabbed George's wrist and dragged him along pausing once they were far enough away that they would not be able to hear anything Harry or Fred said. Fred wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at their retreating backs.

Harry strained to hear their conversation. "Why are you dragging me away to parts unknown?" George must've asked. His voice was slightly deeper than Fred's.

Harry felt Hermione turn a meaningful gaze toward him. "Oh, that," George said in realization. Harry knew Hermione was rolling her eyes at the boy.

"Yes, that." Hermione answered, "What else would I be dragging you off for?" She then proceeded to continue to drag him away, leaving his suggestions of what she could've been dragging him off for to fall on deaf ears.

"Well, then," Fred said after watching Hermione continuing to drag his twin away. He was continually fidgeting, even at seventeen. "I guess I'll be off then." Fred tipped an imaginary hat at him. Harry heartbeat rose.

"Uh, wait," Harry said, grabbing his arm. He looked into Fred's eyes and steeled his nerves.

Harry mentally counted to ten to gather his courage. He could hear the little Ron voice in his head mental jeering at him. _What, _it said,_ you can take down a full grown basilisk with only a sword at twelve years-old, but you can't work up the courage to talk to my brother?_ Harry silenced the mental Ron voice.

"What's it you want to talk to me about, Harry?" Fred asked with a silly grin. He was always grinning, Harry thought. It looked good on him. "Harry, are you alright there?" Fred said as he waved his hand in front of Harry's face.

Harry shook his head, and jumped slightly as his musings were interrupted. "Yeah, 'm fine," Harry answered.

"Then what's it you want to talk about?" Fred asked again.

"Well," Harry stuttered, "You see, umm" Harry decided to throw caution to the wind, something Hermione was constantly reminding him that he often did. He closed his eyes, and he kissed Fred. He kissed Fred. He kissed _Fred._

Harry pulled back from the kiss, and looked at Fred. He was shocked, sure, but there was no sign whatsoever that he had enjoyed the kiss. Harry stepped back.

"I'm sorry about that." Harry apologized, sincerely hoping that Fred would not break out of his shock before he could flee. "I should have listened to Hermione and let it be. I'm sorry." After completing his apology he fled, leaving Fred standing there in the middle of the Room of Requirement.


	2. Mona Lisa Lost Her Smile

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

**For the Shipping Shuffle Competition of HPFC**

**Song: Mona Lisa Lost Her Smile by David Allan Coe**

**Pairing: Dobby/Winky**

**This is supposed to be a Human AU and a Civil War AU. I hope I didn't horribly mess it up.**

* * *

"Winky, do you ever think of being free?" Dobby asked her one day as they picked crops. Winky was so startled she almost dropped her basket.

"Dobby, those are bad thoughts." She scolded as soon as she had regained her bearing. She adjusted the position of the basket on her hip. "You know it's our place to serve a family."

"But what if it's not Winky?" Dobby questioned her.

"It is, Dobby," She answered finally. "Now get back to work, or Master will be disappointed, and you know what happens when master gets disappointed."

* * *

A month later, Winky caught Dobby sneaking out of the slave's sleeping quarters. "Dobby, what do you think you are doing?" She asked, her face illuminated by the full moon.

"I must warn Harry Potter." Dobby said determinedly. Winky grabbed his arm as she moved to leave the yard.

"What be so important that you have to take such a risk?" Winky asked him, her hand wrapped still firmly around his arm.

"Something bad will happen at Hogwarts. Harry Potter must not go Hogwarts." Dobby confided.

"Isn't that the school Young Master goes off to?" Winky asked, shock shining through her voice.

"Yes, it be the school of Young Master." Dobby answered, "I must go."

"Indeed you must," Winky said as she marched him in the direction of the big house.

"No, Winky, Harry Potter's house be that way." Dobby objected as he pointed in the direction opposite to the one they were currently headed in.

"If it involves Young Master's safety, then Master must be told." Winky said as she continued to drag him farther away from the place where he wished to go.

Dobby stopped them. "Young Master will be at no risk, Winky, but Harry Potter, he will be. I must warn him." Dobby broke out of her grip and began running back the way they came. Winky smiled softy at his retreating back, but did not go after him.

* * *

"Winky!" Dobby yelled as he ran into the fields. "I be free!" He waved the piece of paper confirming it in the air.

"Dobby," Winky said in anguish, "Why you be freed?"

"Oh Winky, the great Harry Potter is tricking Master into freeing me!" Dobby said as he swung her around. "I be free!"

As soon as Dobby put her down, Winky began picking again. "Where will you go, Dobby?" Winky asked with her voice choked with sadness.

"Don't be worried Winky. I's will go to Hogwarts, and work under Dumbly-dore." Dobby assured her. "I's will be visiting often as I can. He even be offering me pay, Winky" The last part was said with great reverence.

On impulse, Winky hugged him. "I's will miss you, Dobby."

* * *

"Do not worry, Winky." Dobby said soothingly as sobs wracked her form "You will like it here at Hogwarts."

Winky cried some more and took another shot of her butter beer. "Master has freed me. Winky is worth nothing." She slid down to the floor and sobbed. Dobby held her comfortingly, though it didn't do any good.

* * *

"Dobby where's you be going?" Winky asked again as she took his arm once more.

"The great Harry Potter is in trouble. Dobby must help." Dobby said determinedly once again. Winky flashed back to that might before Dobby had been freed, when she had caught him trying to sneak out like this, to help Harry Potter.

This time Winky did not even protest. "Be safe, Dobby." She said as she released his arm. She had seen what was happening at Hogwarts, and she had heard the whispers of Harry Potter being the one to stop it. Not to mention, she knew that Dobby was too devoted to Harry Potter.

Dobby ran up to her and kissed her. It lasted only a second, but it was so much more to her. "I will be." He said, and ran off.

* * *

Winky tied up her hair with the handkerchief that Master – no, old master – had given her. She looked over at the person beside her, and nodded. She may not have believed in being free, but she was not going to let Dobby's death, the news of it brought to her by a series of slave that had somehow known to contact her, go without a fight. She charged out, and while it may have been for Hogwarts, but for her it was also for Dobby. "For you Dobby," She whispered, "I will fight, like you taught me."


	3. Just Blue

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

**For the Shipping Shuffle Competition on HPFC**

**Song: Just Blue by The Weepies**

**Pairing: Viktor/Fleur**

* * *

Fleur sat down on the wet British grass. The patch of grass she was on was not far from their carriages, but it gave her an unobstructed view of the lake. The sky above her was grey, and there was rain coming down from the sky in the typical British fashion. Most of the student of Hogwarts were unperturbed by the rain, letting it soak their robes, and some their hair. Almost all of her schoolmates were scrambling to get out of the rain, a small number of the more self-conscience or beauty-obsessed Hogwarts students among them. Fleur would not be surprised if she was one of the only Beauxbatons students out.

Fleur curled herself up into a ball. She looked out on the lake, seeing the ship that belonged to the Durmstrang students, and more importantly, him. In that moment, something broke inside of her. Her parents were keeping Gabrielle away from her, because of the fiasco that was the Second Task, for both of their protections. She had no idea what to do about the Third Task, and people had died in that task. Lots of people!

Fleur heard a branch crack behind her. Her hand slipped into her pocket, giving her a firm grip on her wand. She turned her head, but did not get up. There was Durmstrang student, judging by their uniform, approaching her. She didn't stop him. He sat down next to her on the grass.

Fleur turned her head to get a good look at him through her tear blurred eyes. She gasped when she recognized who it was, and started crying even harder than before. It was him. "What is making a strong girl such as you so blue?" He said in rusty French. It was horribly accented, but it was still understandable. Somewhere in her mind Fleur caught that he had called her strong, not lovely.

"My parents are trying to distance my sister and I do not even know how to prepare for a task that has gotten a number of people killed." She said between sobs. She didn't even know why she was telling him all this, but it was making her feel better.

He put his arms around her and let her cry. So, cry she did. Fleur cried until the sky turned dark, and the rain started coming down harder and harder, and even the most resolute Hogwarts students had retreated back to their castle. Still he stayed with her as she cried.

When she was done, he looked down at her and asked, "How do you feel now?" His French accent was still barely understandable.

"Blue," She said looking out at the lake again, "Just blue."

He lifted her chin up. "Then why don't we try to make it red instead."

Fleur blushed. "Like that." He said as he laughed.

She snuggled back into his arms, both of them having long been soaked to the bone. She wasn't cold, thanks in part to what she suspected was a sneakily cast heating charm. "Thank you, Viktor."


	4. She Wouldn't Be Gone

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

**For the Shipping Shuffle Competition on HPFC**

**Song: She Wouldn't Be Gone by Blake Shelton**

**Pairing: Seamus/Lavender**

* * *

Seamus dismounted from his broom in front of The Leaky Cauldron. It was quicker to go on broom than to take the Knight Bus, considering traffic and all. His air was slicked to his face with rain, a product of the torrential downpour that had been going on outside for most of the afternoon. Lightning flash, casting harsh shadows across the pub, and Seamus flinched as he heard her words echoing in his mind.

"_If you really loved me, you wouldn't be a practical stranger!"_

"_If you really cared for me, then you would be here to care for me!"_

"_If you really wanted to be my husband, then you would put me first!"_

Seamus walked into the bar, wiping his hair back with his hand as he crossed into the space. The droplets of water flew across the rather dingy room, landing on and giving a much appreciated cleaning to whatever space they landed on. Seamus sat down at the bar.

"You haven't seen Lavender anywhere, have you Tom?" Seamus asked the man tiredly as he wiped down the bar. The man looked up from his meticulous cleaning, a cleaning that never really got anything clean due to the sheer number of patrons that the Leaky Caldron served on a daily basis.

"No," Tome told Seamus. Seamus visibly sagged in his seat. "I haven't seen her since the two of you came shopping here earlier this month."

"Well, thanks anyway for the help," Seamus said as he pulled up the hood to his cloak.

Tom ran around the bar, and stopped the young man. "You can't be going out there. You'll freeze to death in an instant."

"I've got to go, Tom. Lavender ran off. I can't blame her; she had a valid point. But I've got to look for her. Who knows what could happen to her." Seamus answered as he pushed pasted the barman. Tom didn't follow him.

As he was a few steps away from the threshold, a thoroughly soaked owl landed in front of him. It shook out its feathers in a way not unlike that of a dog, and presented its leg. Seamus greedily snatched the note from its leg. Once he had finished scanning the note from Pavarti saying that she had no idea where Lavender could be, he walked out back into the rain.

Seamus sighed mournfully as he caught site of Lavender's favorite flowers. He should've brought some home, appreciated her more. The reasons she had listed, while they hurt when they were flung directly at his face, were all valid ones. She had had every right to leave him, and she did, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

Seamus reached down and picked up the flower. The rain continued to pour down, but it almost felt like it was about to lighten up. Maybe there was a way to start over again. Maybe Lavender could tell him why those things hurt so much when he did them, and maybe he could find a way to make some of them hurt a little less. That was of course assuming he found her. The rain got heavier at that moment, but he still tucked the flower in his coat pocket. Maybe he could start over after all, but it would definitely be hard.


	5. Ain't Gonna Lose You

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

**For the Shipping Shuffle Competition on HPFC**

**Song: Ain't Gonna Lose You by Brett Dennen**

**Pairing: Bill/Fleur**

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this, Fleur?" Bill heard the voice of his soon-to-be mother-in-law call out from the bright, green flames. He knew just exactly what it was they were discussing. Or rather, who they were discussing. There was a pause.

Fleur's voice was exasperated when she finally answered. "Maman, I have told you a thousand times, I am going to marry Bill." He felt his spirits rise at her answer.

"But you paused," The woman in the flames called out. That poured cold water over any spark of hope he might have had. Bill dared peak his head slightly into the doorway so that he might get a view of his fiancee's face.

"You know exactly why I paused," Fleur said in a voice that clearly suggested that her mother already knew this.

"So it was the scars," She proclaimed triumphantly.

"Maman!" Fleur cried out in a scandalized voice as she threw her arms up in the air. Bill decided he had had enough of the conversation. He pulled his head out of the doorway, thankful that no one had seen him, and ghosted down the corridor to their room.

"Maman!" Fleur cried out as she threw her arms in the air. "You know that is not the case at all. I was just attempting to figure out whether or not I end this conversation could right there. But now I do not care about pleasantries. Goodnight, Maman!" Fleur said as she marched over to the fireplace and cut the floo connection.

She then sighed and went over to one of the kitchen chairs. Bill may have gotten an enhanced sense of hearing and smell when he was attacked, but her was still no better at sneaking around the flat, a skill she had found particularly ironic, considering the amount of time he spent sneaking around at work. She got up from the chair and headed down the hall to their bedroom.

Bill moaned into the pillow. His scars were hurting again, something that he didn't find amusing. They were the source of a lot of pain lately.

The door opened with a creak, and he suppressed the urged to flinch. He felt Fleur's weight settle of the edge of the bed next to him. She put her soft hand on on his back. "Don't worry about Maman. She will get better once she knows you for you."

Bill moaned into the pillow again. If even his future mother-in-law was thinking he was some horrible monster before they had met, then what would strangers think when they saw him for the first time.

"Don't you dare try to call off this wedding because you think it is for my own good, Bill Weasley." Fleur said.

Bill sat up. He put his arms around her. His scarred arms, knotted with trails of black and white, ones that looked so wrong next to the pale smoothness of Fleur's skin. "No," he said as he put his head on top of hers. "I would never do that. It would hurt to much to see you with someone else." He told her.

Fleur smiled, and snuggled deeper into his arms, ones that she thought were perfect, even if other people didn't think so, even of Bill didn't think so. "Good," she said, because that's what the base of everything at that moment was: good.


	6. My Girl

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

**For the Shipping Shuffle Competition on HPFC**

**Song: My Girl by The Temptations**

**Pairing: Harry/Hermione**

* * *

It wasn't the best time of year; in fact, many would call it the worst time of year. They snow wasn't the pristine white of when it had first fallen, but it was no warmer than it had been then. The sky was dull, the clouds hardly distinguishable from their backdrop. Everything was grey.

She didn't really mind the grey. It wasn't ideal weather, but she didn't mind having a break from all the sunshine. It was like the world was telling you it was time to slow down and relax right now, because heavier things were on their way.

Most of her friends did not share her opinion. To them, this middle of winter greyness was a waste of perfectly good time that could be used for other things. Usually they were going half insane at this point. The twins upped their pranks, Ron played so much chess she was surprised that he was still passing his classes, and Harry became moody and snappish, lashing out at the nearest thing he could find, which was often her or Ron.

But then again, he hadn't. This year he hadn't become so snappish and moody about not being able to run out onto the grounds and hop on his broom or just relax under the big, old tree that they liked to talk under. He had continued to do his school work, and continued to ignore the golden egg, something that annoyed her to no end.

"It's the egg," She muttered under her breath.

Harry looked up from his book. "Huh, did you say something Hermione?" He was reading the same book he had read about fifty times before, but he was reading, and that was a good enough start for her.

"I was just thinking about how you've been so calm lately, as opposed to the past couple of years." She answered. "Usually at this time of year, you and everyone else have a huge case of cabin fever." She gestured over to Neville had unsuspectingly fallen victim to one of the twins pranks.

"I suppose so." Harry said thoughtfully, "But I don't know what that has to do with the golden egg."

"Well, the past couple of years you haven't had the egg, and you were so moody, but now you don't and you're fine, so I supposed it was the golden egg." Hermione answered.

"No," Harry answered, "I don't think it's because of the golden egg. I think it's because I've been spending much more time with you than I usually do. After all, you do cheer me up quite a but."

Hermione blushed. "Uh, thank you Harry."

"That's my girl." Harry said with a grin, and went back to reading his book. Hermione blushed, but a smile stretched across her face.

And when the Yule Ball came up, she was Harry's date, not Krum's, no matter what the Bulgarian said.


End file.
